Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1887-01-09
HISTORIC PARALLEL.
HISTORIC pHFExcE OF ME-. cLEvE-
LANDS DEMOCRACY.
.curious coinciderees Between the Admin
istratson Of Jefferson and Clevs-
land. Ciyil.serviee Reform

his il not OF that sporadic fatb emOouled
in the sentiment " to the victor belongs tue
spoils." The facts Of history seem to turn
The charge upon the accusers ana dcuon-
str,te mat ihs l. but spurious after
crow h, and not prime pie OF Democracy
recognized by "thc ilihtrs.'
Unless we are 10 End our poiit'cal creeu
IN The prac ices Of Andrew Jackson ralher
tban i'm the teachings Of Thomas Jefferson,
fbcn Mr.. Cleveland j. the true Democrat
and those Who accuse MN nave 'nVn'>VNSS
departed ffou the faith.
some curious condolences between the
Accommodations OF Jefferson aud Cleveland
have interested the writer, who / poh-
,icisn merely IN the abstract, and venture
,Nc,cfore 10 riyc them 20 your readers IN
80 interest Of historical truth a well as
rsrtv consistency. The more ancient re,
torcrccs are perhaps trlle. and the recent
49,. ma novel. but the comparison may pos
Sibly prove instructive; 80, AIM, ,ho
centraliZing teachings, monar'u'r .V"u
80 and suner. conservative Jennings OF
,.hcsc .upporfers were fast tending the
Coverumeni towards the institutions OF the
old country a regulated press; Govern
1pcpi Orcr instead oi by the people, class
endowed with the special and exclusive
provincc OF ruling; despoitc courts. ana
central power with too large personal lh-
fuencc.
cleveland succeeded twenty-five years
~ RnulJlcan rule. which had come To be
nm almost literal repetition Of the heresies
against which ThOma. Jefferson bad laid
down the eternal PRINCIPLES II true Demo
crocv aud good government In his first in
aueIiral address.
Tbe Massachusetts, jurists and their large
following in the states did not lament more
The - jcOnoclastic jed, rsOn and predict
destruction 10 institutions and traditions
than did the Republican party clam TO fore
seem the election Of Cleveland the end oil
GOOD government, the triumph Of the COM
muni,iic tendency. and the death oil tue
busjUcs, interest. Of the country.
The idols which Thomas Jefferson has
tbroWn down were, after sixty years, set
mn again in their places, and are once more
broken by the triumph Of tins restored
Democracy.
Cleveland owes his election 10 grea.
extent t. acccs,Ions from the opposite
partv. II was tue Of Jefferson, too, that
al lfnst his election over Burr was the re-
.ult Of the course 81 the FedcraiSt Bay
ard, Of Delaware, who preferred bis c0un-
try 10 his party. The coincidence Is
Greater when we remember thal whllc 10
The grandsife we owe toe choice OF Jcilcr-
son. 90 the efforts Of the grandson the cleo
t,on Of cleveland Is largely due, and the
houor,d name u rs much distinguished IN
fine third as IL was IN the FIRST generation.
strong a. these parallels are, they count
buf little towards the peculiar characteriS'
tics Of Mr.. Cleyeland's course, for which he
+. attack, d, when compared with the greater
similarity between the utterlnccs OF the
two Presidents uuOn this same subject.
Not 10 make the extract too long ] quote
the substance a. given by SchOuber, the adj
milsblc historian
But Jefferson 10y no means inclined to
the doctrine of poriioning out official place,
%, The spiilt Of party or personal triumph.
Reflection brought him to the fol-
lowing conclusions: () That as to ap-
pointmcnts 10 civil offices at Executive
Ilclsure which bis predecessor had made
after the presidential result was known, no
mercy should be- shown; (2) That officers
gully Of official misconduct (or one might
add, nOtorously Inefficient were proper
subjects Of removal; (3) That good men
differing only IN political belief, aud per-
forming their functions diligently, were
moi proper subjects o. removal. Another
cause for removal occurred 10 him after
some cNpcrience-namclv, eiectiOneering
actively or open, persistent and industrious
opposition to The principles Of his Admin
i,trstiOn: for while, me said. every officer
81 the Government might vote at elections
according 10 his conscience, he should DE-
tTay the cause committed 10 his care were
hc 10 permit the influence Of official pltron-
age 10 be- used 10 overthrow that cause
May not the historian who thus wrote OF
I.Vtff .syll frtfr OF
President Cleveland;
WitnC.> the Curtis letter of December
%. 1881: II regard myself pledged to
this one cuioTc ment Of the ciNil-SerNice
law because NV conception Of true Demo-
cratic faith and public duty requires that
thi, and all other statutes should be ingood
faith and without evasion enforced, and
because in many utt,rlncc, made prior to
ny election o. President, approved by The
uariy 10 which belong aud which | have
no disposition 90 discllim, ! have IN effect
promised the people that this should be
done
"There is class Of Government posi-
tion, which are not within the letter oil the
ciyiLscryice statute, hut which are 30 dis
connected with The policy OF the Admluls-
trgtion that the removal thercfrom OF
present incUmhcnts, IN my opinion, should
not De made during the terms for which
they were appointed solely on partisan
grounds and for the purpose OF putting in
their places those VINO ale i'm political ac-
cord with The appointing power. But
many now hol Sing such positions have for
fcitcd all Just claim 10 rctCution. because
they have used their places for party pur-
poses IN disregard OF their duty 10 the
peOplc, and because. instead Oi being de-
cent public servants they have proved
themselves offensive part,ans and unscru-
pulous manipulation, OF local party manage
ment.
The lessons Of the past should be un-
learned; and such officials. rs well a their
successors, should be taught that efficiency,
fitness. ana devotion 10 public duty are the
conditions Of their continuance in public
place. and that quiet and unobtrusive eX-
crcl,e OF individual rights is the reasonable
measure Of their party service.
II | were addressing none but party
friends l should deem it entirely proper to
remind them that, though the coming Adj
ministration Is 20 be Democratic, due re-
gard for the peoples interest does not per-
nit faithful patty work 10 be ALWAYS re-
wafded by appointment to Office, and TO
say TO them that while Democrats NAV eX'
pect all proper consideration, selections for
Office not embraced within the civil-service
rules will be based upon sufficient inquiry
Il 10 fitness, instituted by those charged
with thai duty, rather than upon persistent
impOrtunity or Seli.sOhciied recommends
tions on behalf of candidates for appoint
mcnt.'
have gwen this Quotation at length be-
cause It seems alWo,t paraphrase OF the
extract quoted lIOul. Mr.. Jellcrson's views,
and IL doubtless isSimpiy an expression
on Mr.. Cleveland, part OF the Democratic
doctrine which be has been taught from his
youth up.
But these conclusions are again most
clearly aud emphatically repeated IN two
annual mess ages OF December s, 1883, and
December o. 1856, and with peculiar and
emphatic federation In the special message
TO the Senate with regard 10 the papers Ie-
laling to suspensions from office. They
have also found most appropriate and con-
ssteut opportunity bOtn for speech and
practice in the recent action of the Presi-
dent in the eases OF the district attorneys
who were removed. aud one OF whom was
Ieinstaicd.
But il may be said that these are all eX-
preSsiOns dftCr The election.
II il was necessary 10 prove that the
people elected Mr. Cleveland as man
welded to the ciyl-seryce idea a reference
10 the campaign documents VI 1884 would
ne an thai Il needed